Since last winter, Emergent Legal has represented Jeff and Mikki Martin, the founders of CrossFit Kids, in their trademark and tort dispute with CrossFit Inc. in Arizona federal court. (Previous posts on the case are here and here.) CrossFit initiated the litigation last October, claiming the Martins were infringing its trademark by using and promoting CrossFit Kids without a license. In December, we filed counterclaims on behalf of the Martins alleging that the Martins had created and developed CrossFit Kids -- a program adapting the high-intensity regimen of CrossFit to minors -- with CrossFit's knowledge and encouragement, and had been deceived into folding their operations into that of CrossFit with false promises of profit-sharing that CrossFit never fulfilled.

CrossFit has fought hard to keep the Martins' counterclaims from being heard on the merits, filing a first motion to dismiss in January and, when the court let stand many of the Martins' allegations, filing a second one in March. Last week, the court again denied CrossFit's motion in significant respects, ensuring that the Martins' central claim -- that CrossFit deceived them into giving up control of CrossFit Kids so that it could finalize a then-secret deal with Reebok and capture the millions of dollars in revenue CrossFit Kids generates every year -- would be decided on its facts.

We're grateful to the Martins for their continued trust, and look forward to pushing through discovery and on towards an early 2016 trial. To find out whether we can help you in your trademark or other disputes, contact us.